Safety truck-frame.



F. B. EBERT. SAFETY TRUCK FRAME.

APPLICATION IILED DBO.18,1908.

91 8,521 Patented Apr.. 20, 1909.

' awucmto'e witnesses Mg ZZ'E B QM tion and on the several figures ofthe draw- UNITE SALES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK B. EBERT, OF HUMBOLDT, KANSAS.

SAFETY TRUCK-FRAME.

Application filed December 18, 1908.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK B. EBERT, a citizen of the United States,residing at Humboldt, in the county of Allen and State of Kansas,haveinvented certain new and use ful Improvements in Safety 'lruck-Irames, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to railway rollingstock, and has particularreference to an improved form of safety appliance for railway cartrucks, hereinafter fully set forth and claimed and illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of aconventional form of car truck having attached thereto the safety framesconstituting the subject-matter of this invention; Fig. 2 is a crosssectional view, indicating the inner face of a pair of side wheels and asafety Specification of Letters Patent.

frame secured in place, and Fig. 3 is a sectional detail hereinafterfully described.

Throughout the following detail descripings similar parts are referredto by like reference characters.

A very large proportion of the accidents which occur on railroads aredue to a disabled or broken box or journal, which are usually located onthe outside of the wheels. In the event of a broken journal, the axleand wheels attached thereto are liable to become dis laced from therails, with the usual well I1OWI1 disastrous results.

The aim of this invention is to provide a simple attachment for use inconnection with car trucks of well known form to prevent thedisplacement of a wheel from the rail in the event of wreckage of ajournal of the axle to which said wheel is connected.

As indicated in the drawings, a pair of axles 10 having wheels 11secured thereto in the ordinary manner are connected by truck frames 12at the axle journals. There is also employed a lower transom or springplank 13 and an upper transom 14, between which are arranged the usualsprings 15 of any suitable construction. Each frame 12 consists of atrussed structure having rigid connection with the transom 13 and withinwhich the upper transom 14. operates, the weight of the car being bornedirectly upon the transom 14 and ultimately by the transom 13 supportedby the wheels, axles, and truck frames 12.

Secured to the transom 13 in a substan- Patented April 20, 1909.

Serial No. 468,232.

tially rigid and permanent manner, and adjacent to the inner faces ofeach pair of side wheels of the truck, is a safety frame 16 comprisin atrussed frame having an upper bar 17, a lower bar 18, and anintermediate bar 19. Said lower and intermediate bars are spacedvertically from the upper bar, but are united at the ends to said upperbar forming U-shaped sockets to receive the bearing members. A pair ofvertical spacing members 21 extend between the upper and intermediatebars and closely embrace the transom l3, constituting means for securing the safety frame to said transom. In each of the U-shaped socketsare arranged bearing elements consisting of a lubricant box 22 at thetop of said socket, and against which is a bearing brass 23, the lowerface of which is shaped to conform with the form of the axle which isreceived loosely therein but spaced normally therefrom to any suitabledistance, for instance one-half an inch under ordinary circumstances.The bearing members 22 and 23 are provided with projecting end flangeswhich embrace the walls of the U-shaped sockets, and thereby areprevented from displacement therefrom.

The bottom of each U-shaped socket is spanned by a closure 24 consistlngof a strong metallic plate 25, secured to the bent portion of the lowerbar 18, and to said plate are connected flanged extensions 26 whichextend upwardly therefrom and engage the lower portions of the brass 23to prevent the latter from dropping downwardly into contact with theaxle. The closure 24 serves also as an effective means to prevent thefalling of an axle in the event of breakage thereof adjacent to theinner surface of the wheel.

The box 22 is provided with an oil cavity 27 having an outlet 28. Saidoutlet is provided at its upper end with a conical seat 28, within whichis normally seated a valve 29 having a head which closes said opening.

The lower end of the valve projects slightly i carried by the frame 12the transoms 13 and 14 will cause the safety frame 16 to drop into play,thereby sustaining the weight of the car upon the axle or axles on theinside of the Wheel, thereby saving accident or disaster.

The safety frames are comparatively inexpensive to build and may readilybe applied to car trucks of ordinary construction now in use.

Having thus described the invention, what cured to said transom adjacentto the inner faces of a side pair of wheels, said safety frame havingUshaped sockets embracing the axles, a boxing carried at the upperportion of each socket, and a brass curved to conform to the shape ofthe axle carried adjacent to said l boxing and slightly spaced normallyfrom the axle.

2. The herein described saftey frame for railway trucks, comprising arigid trussed structure having at each end a U-shaped socket, alubricant box carried at the upper end of each socket, a brass carriedin each socket against the lower face of said box, and a closure for thelower end of each socket comprising a rigid plate connected to the framestructure and having means extended u ward therefrom to maintain saidbrass in e evated position.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

FRANK B. EBERT.

itnesses V. A. SNEERENGER, G. W. DICKINSON.

